BILL NUMBER: AB 646INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Cooley FEBRUARY 21, 2013 An act to add Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 10050) to Part 7 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, relating to public education governance. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 646, as introduced, Cooley. Public education governance: Regional P-20 councils. Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in this state, and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive (K-12). Existing law also establishes a system of public postsecondary education in the state that consists of 3 segments: the University of California, the California State University, and the California Community Colleges. This bill would express the intent of the Legislature to affirm the employer-education partnership model of a regional P-20 council as a desired structure in California to help align preschool, K-12, community college, 4-year college, and graduate and professional education programs and funding to advance strategic educational and economic outcomes. The bill would authorize a school district, community college district, or campus of the California State University or University of California to establish or participate in a regional P-20 council, and authorize a regional P-20 council to include representatives of private sector employers. The bill would require a regional P-20 council established under the bill to identify educational objectives that are consistent with the objectives of council members and with statewide education policies and goals. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Chapter 1.3 (commencing with Section 10050) is added to Part 7 of Division 1 of Title 1 of the Education Code, to read: CHAPTER 1.3. REGIONAL P-20 COUNCILS 10050. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (1) P-16 councils were first established in several states in the 1990s to convene state leaders representing early learning (the "P" stands for preschool) through the first four years of college (the "16"). More recently, some states have extended the scope of these councils to include doctoral and professional schools (the "20"). (2) According to a 2008 report of the Education Commission of the States, 38 states had established a P-16 or P-20 council and 11 states had regional P-16 or P-20 councils. (3) California will benefit from a system of regional P-20 councils, composed of both employers and educational leaders of educational entities that provide instruction for all levels from early childhood learning to doctoral and professional programs, to help align educational programs, policies, and funding to meet strategic educational and economic objectives. (b) Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to affirm the employer-education partnership model of a regional P-20 council as a desired structure in California to help align preschool, K-12, community college, four-year college, and graduate and professional education programs and funding to advance strategic educational and economic outcomes. 10051. A school district, community college district, or campus of the California State University or University of California may establish or participate in a regional P-20 council, which may include representatives of regional private sector employers as well as public educational entities. A regional P-20 council established under this section shall identify educational objectives that are consistent with the objectives of council members and with statewide education policies and goals. A regional P-20 council shall be aligned, as much as feasible, with the regional structures in the State Department of Education, the California Community Colleges, and the Department of Industrial Relations. A school district or community college district that participates in a regional P-20 council may establish eligibility for funding under the Career Technical Education Pathways Program (Part 52 (commencing with Section 88530) of Division 7 of Title 3), contingent on the district' s conformity with the standards of that program and the availability of funds.